Effect of stoichiometry on the magnetocrystalline anisotropy of Fe–Pt and Co–Pt from first-principles calculation

The effect of stoichiometry on magnetocrystalline anisotropy energy (MAE) of Fe1+xPt1-x and Co1+xPt1-x (-0.5 < x < 0.5) is studied by use of first-principles method. The calculated MAEs show maxima at x = 0 for both fully L10-ordered systems. Compared with that, the MAEs of partially L10-ordered systems reduce but their composition dependences do not change, without shift of the maximum MAE to Fe/Co-rich alloy as found in experiment at room temperature. In the off-stoichiometric alloys, the misoccupied Fe/Co and Pt show large MAEs, which is explained by the enhanced in-plane hybridization between Fe/Co and Pt. The composition dependence of the atom-resolved MAE is governed by the varying number of heterogeneous ligands around the atom. The MAE(T)/MAE(0) is discussed based on spontaneous magnetization and Curie temperature, which suggests that the temperature effect may contribute to the discrepancy between calculation and experiment in the composition dependence of MAE.